


Roller Rink

by RedTeamShark



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Author Chose Not To Tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-30
Updated: 2014-03-30
Packaged: 2019-09-12 04:11:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16865893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedTeamShark/pseuds/RedTeamShark
Summary: It’s Joel’s turn to pick where they go for date night. He chooses the roller rink. Ray is not amused.





	Roller Rink

**Author's Note:**

> Proper warnings, tags, etc, may come in the future. For the time being I'm frantically transferring my content to a stable platform amidst growing concerns about tumblr's inevitable implosion.
> 
> Apologies for flooding the fandom page.

Ray was not going to admit that he didn’t know how to roller skate.

Not because he was embarrassed (he openly admitted he didn’t know how to drive, ride a bike, or swim, after all), or because he was trying to salvage some small bit of his pride (he’d given up on the notion a long time ago). It was simpler than that.

If he admitted that he couldn’t skate, had never even tried in fact, Joel would think of something new for date night. Joel would want to accommodate him, would suggest going to the Alamo for a movie or to a nice restaurant for dinner or anything but what the older man had already chosen. Joel would  _care_  enough to change his own plans to make Ray more comfortable. Ray liked that, but he also hated it. He didn’t want to be the one to drag down the relationship into routine—that was the entire purpose of date night! Once a month Joel picked something for them to do together and once a month Ray picked something for them to do together. It kept things interesting, kept things from becoming boring because there were so many things to  _do_  in the world and they both saw them on different levels.

But roller skating.

Huffing and crossing his arms, Ray flopped back against the passenger seat of Joel’s car, a pout firmly on his lips. The older man noticed, reaching over and patting his knee lightly. “We can do something else, you know…”

“No.” He forced his arms to uncross, setting his hand over Joel’s and forcing himself to not sound like a bratty little kid on the verge of a tantrum. “I mean… This is what you want to do. So let’s do it.”

Silence in the car, not even the sound of the radio to fill the empty air. Ray sighed. “Joel…”

“I just don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

“I’m  _fine_.”

Joel grunted in response to that, his fingers flexing lightly against Ray’s knee, a small gesture of comforting. He signaled and pulled into the parking lot of the roller rink, finding a spot (easy task, the place was almost empty) and shutting off the car. He turned, fully facing the younger man. “What’s making you not want to do this?”

He wasn’t going to admit he couldn’t skate, that would definitely make Joel take him home. Instead he sighed, shaking his head. “Public, man. I don’t like doing things that I’m not good at in front of other people. And roller skating at least sort of athletic, so I know I’m going to be sucky at it.”

Joel laughed, getting out of the car and walking around to get Ray’s door for him. “Dude, look at the parking lot. This place is practically a ghost town.”

Ray found himself smiling, getting out of the car and following Joel inside. It was just as the older man was letting the door swing shut behind them that the school busses pulled in.

They got their skates first, heading over to a bench near a row of lockers to change. Joel slid his on easily, tying the laces and putting his shoes in one of the lockers, along with his wallet and car keys. He took Ray’s things when the younger man handed them over, raising an eyebrow. “You sure you want to put your phone away?”

“I don’t want to break it if I fall.” Ray shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck a bit self-consciously; he could hear the three busses worth of students in the roller rink’s lobby. The place had gone from almost completely void of people to bustling in a matter of moments. “You would pick field trip day to come here, huh?”

“I had no idea they were going to be here. We can still go home if you want.” Joel smiled, sitting down on the bench next to Ray, an arm slipping around his shoulders.

“Not a chance. Let’s do this.” He let Joel get up first, however, letting himself be pulled to his feet. Ray wobbled but waved Joel ahead to the rink, unsteadily making his way across the carpet, one hand on the wall for support. He could do this, he could do this…

Joel was already skating when he reached the opening to the wood floor, gliding easily across the highly polished surface, gaining speed and moving confidently. Ray watched for a moment, feeling his heart speed up a bit. He was going to make  _such_  an ass of himself.

When Joel passed him again, the older man slowed down, holding out a hand. “Come on!” He called with a smile and, helpless to it, Ray smiled back and took his hand. He set one skate on the wooden floor, pushing off the carpet with the other, letting himself be pulled into the rink.

He was on his ass about two seconds later, flailing for something to grab onto and finding nothing. Ray let out a yelp of pain, scooting across the floor to the wall and pulling himself up, pausing to rub his backside. Well, this was going to be a fun afternoon.

The Puerto Rican made his way unsteadily around the rink, holding onto the wall for support, slipping and sliding across the smoothly polished floor as his skates would suddenly decide that going left was a good idea, rather than continuing straight. On the plus side, he definitely wasn’t the worst person there—he’d already seen several of the kids from the busses take spills on the rink (and a few on the carpet) and at least one of them had stumbled off in tears to the sound of pitying laughter from their peers. At least the kids were leaving him alone…

Joel slid by him easily, turning and skating backwards, waving. “C’mon, Ray!” He called companionably, holding his arms wide. “This whole rink and you wanna hug the wall?”

“Oh, screw you!” Ray shot back, lifting his middle finger. “Quit being a show-off!”

Joel moved closer to him, leaning down slightly and pressing a quick kiss to his temple. “Finding your footing okay?” He murmured, one hand pressing to Ray’s back, steadying him as he wobbled again.

“I’m fine.” The younger man snapped, cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Okay, so he completely sucked at this, but he didn’t want Joel to be so pitying about it!

Of course, his actions immediately belied his words, as his left skate decided that it suddenly wanted to go backwards while his right skate continued forward. His knee hit the floor hard and something in his thigh pulled and Ray found tears springing to his eyes, a whimper passing his throat. He swallowed both, forcing himself to his feet, swatting away Joel’s hands. Cheeks still red, Ray pushed himself towards the entrance, making his way unsteadily to a bench and sitting down.

Joel watched him, concerned frown on his lips, before skating off.

For a while Ray just watched the crowd, rubbing his hurt knee and fighting down the tears—they were more embarrassment than pain and crying would be more than a little pathetic. He’d lost track of Joel on the rink, something of a miracle considering most of the other people out on the floor were probably about twelve and his boyfriend towered over them. Though, to be fair, it wasn’t like he was really paying attention.

So it was a surprise when someone sat down next to him and slid an arm around his waist, a surprise when lips pressed to the top of his head. “I’m sorry.” Joel whispered, handing him a soda. “Shouldn’t have made fun of you.”

Ray sipped the soda, reaching up to rub his eye before turning, pout firmly on his lips. “If you’re really sorry, then take me…” ‘Take me home’ had been on the tip of his tongue, a demand which Joel would meet immediately; there was a big difference between playful teasing and actual upset, after all. “…out there and teach me how to skate.” Ray surprised himself with the words, and if the look on Joel’s face was anything to go by, the older man hadn’t expected them either.

“You sure?” He asked, taking the offered soda and taking a sip. His hand rubbed up and down Ray’s back, one eyebrow lifting.

“Yes, dammit. You wanted to do this, so let’s do this. Just… teach me how to not fall down every few seconds.” Ray crossed his arms, eyes darting to the rink again. It was starting to empty out some, most of the kids apparently growing bored. Joel got to his feet, holding out his hand and carefully pulling Ray up.

Together, they made their way to the rink, Joel transitioning smoothly from the carpet to the wooden floor. Ray followed him, again slipping, but this time Joel held onto his hands, keeping him on his feet. Once Ray had his balance again, Joel squeezed his hand, slowly guiding him onto the floor.

With Joel’s hand in his, Ray actually found it easier to skate. The older man kept the pace slow, leading him around the mostly-empty area. He slipped near the middle, but Joel was there, catching him just enough to make the fall slightly less painful, carefully hauling him to his feet again. The next time he slipped, Joel kept him from actually falling, holding him steady until Ray was certain on his skates once more. He smiled, glancing over and getting a smile in return, seconds before Joel’s skates betrayed him.

The older man when down with a thud and Ray laughed, right until Joel used their still-linked fingers to pull him down. He gasped as he landed on top of his boyfriend, huffing and giving his shoulder a playful shove. “You’re an ass.”

“Hey, you’re the one who laughed at me.”

“You deserved it! Showing off all day and laughing at  _me_ , it’s pure karma that you fell!” Ray slid back as Joel got up, carefully gaining his own footing, their fingers soon linked together again.

“So if I got hurt, you’re not gonna kiss it better?” The older man questioned, again leading him slowly around the rink. Most of the kids were packing up to leave; they practically had the place to themselves.

“I might kiss it better. Depends on where you got hurt.” Ray conceded, leaning over and pressing a kiss to Joel’s cheek.

They continued skating for another half hour or so, Ray gaining confidence on his feet as they moved around the now empty arena. When the younger man took a bathroom break, Joel rolled up to the DJ in the booth, asking if he’d lower the lights and put on a slow song. The man agreed and, when Ray came back, Joel pulled him onto the floor again.

“How long were you planning on keeping me out here?” Ray questioned with a smile, allowing his fingers to link with Joel’s as the older man skated backwards in front of him.

“Not much longer.” The lights dimmed almost on cue, slow, soft music coming from the speakers placed around the area. “Just until the end of this song.”

“You are  _such_  an ass.” Ray groaned, letting himself be pulled closer, gliding across the smoothly polished floor in the dim lights. “But you’re a romantic ass.” He conceded as they rolled to a stop near the middle of the rink, reciprocating the kiss that Joel pressed to his lips.

They skated through the song, hands tight together, lips meeting frequently. When it was over and the lights came up again, they headed for the exit, getting their things from their locker and returning their skates to the rental. Ray unlocked his phone, opening up the camera and grinning as they stepped outside, holding it up.

“C’mon, man. Required date night selfie.” He demanded, pulling Joel in close for the picture, making sure that the name of the skating rink was visible behind them. Joel leaned in, turning and pressing a kiss to his cheek just as Ray hit the button to take the photo, laughing slightly.

“Cute.”

“You’re a jerk. Let’s go eat.”

In the car, Joel’s hand settled over Ray’s knee again, lightly rubbing the bruised skin. “You had fun?”

“I did.” He admitted, smiling and leaning over, kissing his boyfriend’s jaw. “I had a lot of fun after I stopped falling down like an asshole.”

“Good. I’m glad.”

“Thanks for… showing me how to skate, Joel.” Ray finally mumbled, eyes on his sneakers. “I guess… doing something different sometimes isn’t so bad.”

“Even if outside is scary?”

“Even if outside is scary.”

Joel leaned over and kissed him as they rolled up to a red light. “Love you, Ray.”

“Love you too.” He kissed back, before giving the older man a light shove. “Now keep your eyes on the damn road before you get us both killed.”

“You got it.”

Ray smiled, settling back in the seat and resting his hand over Joel’s as long fingers continued to stroke his knee. He’d have to think of something new and different for his next turn to pick date night. New and different wasn’t that bad.


End file.
